Lincoln University Puts Jennings on The Pike and Looks Forward to the Future

By Gloria Dulan-Wilson 

Hello All:

Monday, November 24 had me doing a happy dance - as the announcement I had been waiting for came across my computer screen:  "Jennings resigns from Lincoln University!"  Then I let out a Lincoln Roar! - a major cheer at the fact that we had been victorious in ridding our beloved Alma Mater of what has to have been one of the worst ersatz presidents ever to cross Lincoln's threshold.

It's been nearly three years since I said, "He's got to go!" to my fellow classmates - who agreed, but had initially hoped that things would get better once he caught the spirit of  Lincoln.  Well not only did that not happen, but his full effect was to destroy the spirit of Lincoln at every turn - from cancelling the time honored Alumni week, to expelling 300 students at the same time, to ignoring then changing the date of the celebration of Lincoln's 160th anniversary, to insulting the Alumni Association every chance he got.

STUDENTS WEAR DUCT TAPE OVER MOUTHS IN PROTEST - Carol Black Photographer

LU ALUMNI HOLD PROTEST BEFORE BOARD MEETING - Photo Courtesy Carol Black

Appeal after appeal was made to the Board of Trustees by the Alumni Association of Lincoln University (AALU), but to no avail.  It appeared that they were solidly behind him, stating that they had contracted with him to balance the budget and to re-organize Lincoln University so that it was more fiscally sound.  According to the Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Kimberly Lloyd, Jennings had met the contractual requirements.  But to the mind of the alumni, it was more a matter of the operation being a success, but the patient died.  Jennings was killing Lincoln University by inches and degrees.  

Things had begun to unravel when he was absent from Lincoln's traditional Homecoming events, which took place in October, 2014.  Demands for his dismissal from alumni who had previously been silent on the subject were flying back and forth across the internet.  The one event a sitting president (even an ersatz president) should never miss is Homecoming!

JENNINGS - GONE - Thank Goodness!!!

It had to be  Divine Intervention that a video of Jennings attempting to "counsel" female students on "false rape charges" and the "motives of men" was posted on YouTube, exposing him for the phoney he truly was.  YouTube did for us what no amount of meeting, cajoling, petitioning, summit conferences had been able to do over the past two years.  With a firestorm of controversy now inundating the TV, radio, newspapers; with outraged parents, feminists, and student groups now coming together to give us the back up we needed to bring the issue to a head, the Alumni gathered to sit in on a Board of Trustees Meeting which took place on November 15, saw the meeting so inundated with alumni coming from as far south as Florida, and as far north as New York.  So outraged was the Philadelphia community, State Representative W. Curtis Thomas completely changed his agenda to be present for the meeting.

GLORIA DULAN-WILSON HOLDS PROTEST SIGN - Carol Black Photographer

However, it appeared that instead of accommodating the alumni who had come in genuine concern for their alma mater, and moving the  meeting to a room that would allow all who had traveled to be able to listen, they continued to hold the meeting in a small conference room that only seated 30 alumni  -- with campus police barring entry to the rest of the nearly 100 who waited outside.  Rather than be discouraged, the alumni continued to wait outside and in smaller conference rooms during the entire 5 hours that the board held their business as usual agenda.  They made a canned statement at the beginning of the meeting stating that Jennings had fulfilled his contract, that they saw no problem in his performance - which got a rise of dissent from the audience. 

It was clear they were concerned about their alma mater, and were there to show solidarity with the faculty who had issued a vote of no confidence in Jennings, and the students who had been forbidden the same privilege - in fact students were walking around campus with duct tape on their mouths to show they had been gagged into silence. 

The upshot of the meeting was that the Board of Trustees declined to make a decision at that point, calling it a "personnel matter," with the decision being left to the various chairs.  We would, they said, receive an announcement of their decision "shortly."

STUDENT PROTEST SIGNS -After having been forbidden to render a vote of no confidence in Jennings
 Carol Black Photographer

CAMPUS POLICE BAR FACULTY FROM BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEETING Carol Black Photographer

We left Lincoln University that Saturday afternoon feeling as though we had been ignored and disrespected.  In fact, the 800 pound gorilla in the room at the Philadelphia Chapter of the AALU, which was held on Wednesday, November 19, was how long did we have to wait to end the dragging on with Jennings?  Why was it so obvious to the rest of the world, but not to the Board of Trustees that he was definitely not the right person for Lincoln University?  I somehow felt that our ancestors - Kwame Nkrumah, Nnamde Azikewe, Thurgood Marshall, Langston Hughes, Horace Mann Bond, Gil Scott-Heron and others were definitely not pleased with the way things were going. We had dropped the ball in their eyes.  They would never have allowed this to happen on their watch. 

With Thanksgiving coming up, many turned their minds toward getting ready for the holiday.  I, however, had just been blindsided by the announcement of the death of my friend, Marion Barry, and had been in a quasi funk from Sunday through that Monday.  When Jennings "resignation" appeared  on my computer, it was like a shot of adrenalin!  It was like God giving us all something to be thankful for indeed!!!

I came very close to singing "ding dong the witch is dead..." but refrained from doing so.  With emails and congratulations flying all over the place,  between myself, Bob Ingram, Carol Black, Kenny Poole, Darrell Braxton, Michael Taylor, Joe Reed, Vaughn Thomas and other alumni, we were burning up the internet - rejoicing over a hard fought victory.  Traditional Lincoln Rabble would say that Jennings had been told to "hit the Pike"(referring Baltimore Pike that runs past the campus).

I must give a special shout out to Melissa Harris-Perry - her coverage helped bring to the forefront what we had been trying to say for quite some time; as well as the Philly Tribune.  But I also want to thank Jennings - no matter how much he pretended to be progressive, his negative side continued to creep through - and he finally let it show in such an unmistakable manner, it was impossible to ignore or continue to condone. 

Congratulations to the students of Lincoln University - your show of unity harkens back to the original spirit upon which our school was founded.  Needless to say our Ancestor/lumni are proud of you indeed - you have found much favor in their eyes.

LINCOLN LIONS ROAR!!!!

Now on to the hard, but most important part - selecting a new president - one who is both professional, cultural, creative, dedicated to Lincoln, charismatic, honest, ethical, cordial, a  positive asset, and dedicated to the continuation of Lincoln University as a Black school (HBCU), not some watered down version of political expediency.  He or she doesn't have to walk on water - but probably has to come pretty close.  We've had some exemplary presidents in the past, and unfortunately, we've had some duds as well - and now that we know the difference, we are going to be very meticulous in making the next selection.

The AALU has already begun putting together a revamping agenda for the school, since Jennings has eviscerated so many essential programs, gotten rid of competent staff and replaced them with incompetent ones - like the "Interim VP of Academic Excellence" who replaced the original administrator.  Essential repairs to dormitories had been allowed to go begging to such an extent that they are now major renovation projects.   Alumni had been deprived of their time honored gathering that takes place annually during commencement - Alumni Week - which had been a tradition since the 1800's - and is on the top of the list of things to be restored in 2015.  The celebration of Lincoln's 160th Anniversary was never held (my pet peeve) - depriving us of the opportunity to celebrate that magnificent milestone in the fashion it truly deserved.  But one of the first things they mentioned was removing "The" from the Lincoln University title and logo, and going back to being "Lincoln University."  It was a pretentious artificiality that irked the alumni to no end. 

The laundry list of egregious acts against Lincoln on the part of Jennings adds up to systematic sabotage, which, had it been allowed to continue, would have destroyed the school.  With Valerie Harrison serving as interim president, until a permanent candidate can be identified, things are at least beginning to flow back to normalcy.  However, within that context, the AALU has vowed to be integrally involved in all future planning and direction of Lincoln University.  

It's been a hard fought victory, and a major lesson in how important it is to treasure, support and be involved in our Alma Mater - one we'll never forget as we move to Lincoln's next 160 years.

HAIL! HAIL! LINCOLN!!

Stay Blessed & 
ECLECTICALLY BLACK
Gloria Dulan-Wilson LU '67




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Letter to Lincoln University Board Chair: JENNINGS MUST GO - NOW!!

By Gloria Dulan-Wilson

Hello All: 

As a proud graduate of Lincoln University, and one of the first 16 coed on campus, I have to admit that these past two years have been among the most stressful that I have ever experienced, vis a vis my beloved Alma Mater.  And I know that I'm not alone in expressing this.  Our 160 year old University has, for the first time in recent history, been inflicted with an individual whose very presence has created an atmosphere of negativity and hostility.  From the day Robert Jennings set foot on the campus in 2012, to the present day, it's been a constant battle for the traditions, spirit, and quality that Lincoln University stands for.

Ironically, at a recently held so called public board of trustees meeting, the chair read a statement that pretty much said they were satisfied that Jennings had met their contractual requirements and that they had no problem with him. 

Really???  If his contract was about dismantling the school, demoralizing the faculty and students, replacing time honored faculty, administrators and staff with questionable "interim" vice presidents, and a reduction in enrollment that takes it back to the mid-sixties level (when Lincoln had 600 males and 20 females, of which I was one), then he has indeed done "fine" job. 

It also speaks to whether or not the board is in tune with the needs of the campus or is a cya/face saving mode (CYA stands for cover your ass, for the uninitiated).

I recently received a letter that was sent to the board chair, that I'm posting here, in case there are those who are viewing the reports on the media and think that the Alumni are complacently sitting back while all this fracas transpires. For I can assure you that we are not.  Actually, I wanted to set Jennings out on the Pike the first time I met him, and more especially after he made the speech at our Alumni Anniversary dinner where he stated arrogantly:  "Everybody agrees with what I'm doing.  They think I'm doing a fantastic job." 

REALLY????  I guess, in retrospect, if he's talking about the Board of Trustees, maybe he was right.  But the jury was still out on the rest of us.  Especially after it became known that he was suspending Alumni reunion week, curtailing accommodations for alumni on the campus, and a whole host of other hostile actions towards those of us who had graduated from Lincoln and loved her enough to maintain a sustaining ongoing relationship. Or how about wanting to bull doze the more that 15 land mark buildings on the campus that have been there since the campus' inception in the 1850's to put up a "welcome center."  Wonder what would have happened had someone told Harvard, Princeton, Columbia, or Yale that they were going to bulldoze their original buildings - PRECISELY - that was our reaction as well.  

The spirits of Langston Hughes, Thurgood Marshall, Kwame Nkrumah, Nnamde Azikewe, Horace Mann Bond, Marvin Wachman and so many of our ancestors must be looking down upon us with shame as we go through dragging out what is really a simple procedure.  These men of action knew that the greater good was more important than anything else, and that the future of Lincoln University must be preserved and protected at all costs.  Presidents (even ersatz presidents) are hired and can be fired; alumni are forever, and are the legacy of the school to the world.  

The posturing and shuffling must end - Jennings must go - NOW. 



This, then, is the letter, directed to the attention of Kimberly Lloyd, chair of the Board of Trustees:



FYI....

Jack, things are not good at Lincoln.....

From: Fire Jennings [mailto:jenningsmustgo@gmail.com]Sent: Monday, November 17, 2014 10:59 PMTo: thekalgroupllc@aol.com;klloyd@oarcphilly.orgSubject: Response to the Board of Trustees

November 17, 2014

Ms. Kimberly A. Lloyd, Chair

Board of Trustees

Lincoln University

Dear Ms. Lloyd:

           

Those of us who work and study at Lincoln University have known for over two years that Robert Jennings is unfit to serve as President of our school.  He has created a chaotic environment in the university administration, with turnover rates well above what they should be and numerous unfilled positions or positions filled by “Acting” or “Interim” administrators.

He has driven potential and current students away from Lincoln with his Draconian policies and mismanagement of academic programs.  Under his leadership, we have seen steady declines in enrollment that exceed those of other public universities, including HBCUs, in our geographic region.  Alumni contributions have dropped, the endowment has been raided, and his fundraising campaign has failed miserably.

Faculty and staff live in fear of his next cutbacks, even as he spends money on questionable projects and fails to provide transparency on the university budget.  Programs are consolidated or eliminated without any input from faculty committees.  He has hijacked faculty meetings, often taking up more than half of the time with his self-aggrandizing “comments” so that faculty business cannot be conducted.  Jennings micromanages decisions at the departmental level, often ignoring the input of those who best know how their programs should be run.

The result is that both the alumni and the faculty voted overwhelmingly that they have “No Confidence” in Jennings’ ability to successfully lead Lincoln University.  This was before a video recording of his “Women’s Convocation” speech was made public through YouTube.  The video has received more than 31,000 views thus far, but, more importantly, it has been widely covered by news media and generated significant pushback from national commentators.

Most recently, Melissa Harris-Perry, one of the most respected African-American television commentators, read a letter to President Jennings on her MSNBC program on Saturday, November 15. She said, “Well, President Jennings, it is you who created that hostile environment when you blamed women for sexual assault and implied that they regularly lie about rape. What you said was offensive, appalling and wrong.” (http://www.msnbc.com/melissa-harris-perry/mhp-letter-robert-jennings)  Harris-Perry stated that Jennings’ words “disgrace the legacy” of Lincoln University.

CNN aired a panel discussion on Nov. 12 led by another prominent African-American journalist, Don Lemon, to discuss President Jennings’ remarks.  One panelist called his comments about women lying about rape “absurd.”  But the strongest criticism came from Gloria Allred, perhaps the most prominent attorney in the nation representing women in discrimination cases. Allred said about Jennings’ remarks, “It creates a hostile environment on that campus for women who are raped or are victims of sexual assault who are thinking about coming forward.”  She added that “I think that the Office of Civil Rights and the Department of Education would be very upset to hear the President’s statements, and, in fact, any victim could use that in a potential lawsuit against the college for a violation of Title IX.” (http://www.cnn.com/video/data/2.0/video/us/2014/11/12/ctn-panel-college-president-explains-why-some-women-lie-about-rape.cnn.html)

The story and the negative reaction to the convocation remarks were published in hundreds of newspapers nationwide, and were included in a Washington Post story about a date rape at Brown University as a means of showing the lack of response to sexual assaults on some college campuses.  Other articles and opinion pieces appeared on highly-viewed web sites such as HuffingtonPost.com, Salon.com, andTalkingPointsMemo.com, and the on-line sites of Cosmopolitan andEssence magazines.

These are not the first comments by President Jennings that demonstrate a lack of sensitivity to our faculty, staff, and students, they are just the ones that were recorded and posted on line.  He has become a liability to Lincoln, and threatens to damage any chance for a rebound in enrollment, faculty and administrative stability, and alumni support at our beloved university. 

That is why so many of us are disappointed in the stamp of approval given to Jennings by you and the Board of

Trustees at the meeting on Saturday, Nov. 15.  Although there was an announcement that a review of President Jennings’ tenure here will be conducted by the Board, there were no specifics as to who would conduct the review, how it would be conducted, when the results would be announced, and what actions might result from such a review, if any. 

The students, faculty, and alumni of Lincoln University have all spoken, and now the local and national media affirm our decisions.  Robert Jennings is damaging our school, and action needs to be taken by the Board of Trustees and you to swiftly remove him before the damage becomes irreversible.

MY RESPONSE TO THE LETTER; 

Hey Dick, John and the rest of the groupii!

This is wonderfully written, succinct, to the point, and in the spirit of Lincoln Alumni - We had an alumni association meeting last night (Wednesday) in Philadelphia questioning who was really going to do the review, when was it going to be complete, when were we going to be notified of the results; and whether or not we would have input in the selection of the next president.  Bob Ingram, national AALU president and I voiced concerns as to whether there were some underlying motives that would prevent the quick dispensation of Jennings' dismissal - i.e. the fact that there is some sort of proposed development of the 432 acres upon which our campus sits - it's ironic that more than one of the board members and their supporters also happen to be RE developers.  Carol Black recently wrote a letter to the organization that was looking to do some development to hold off until the issue with Jennings could be settled, given the fact that he had received votes of no confidence from both the Alumni and Faculty.  Thus far we've heard nothing back from them.  We definitely don't want him to be instrumental in negotiating anything that would tie up the schools resources -

Thanks for sharing it with me

STAY BLESSED &

ECLECTICALLY BLACK

Gloria Dulan-Wilson LU '67

HAIL! HAIL! LINCOLN!!

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JENNINGS MUST GO: LINCOLN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS WEARING GAGS TO DEMONSTRATE CENSORSHIP

By Gloria Dulan-Wilson

Hello All:

LU Students wear tape over their mouths after being forbidden to hold their own vote of no confidence in Robert Jennings the ersatz "president" of Lincoln University

A sad day indeed at Lincoln University - my Alma Mater which celebrated her 160th anniversary this year - is marred by an ersatz "president" who has been more of a disaster in his short 2 years on the campus than all the school has had to go through in its entire history.

Robert Jennings has been dubbed the Worst President Ever - and rightly so, since most of what he's actually "accomplished" has been to the detriment of the school.  And, while the Board of Trustees issued a statement that he has fulfilled his contractual agreement with the school - one wonders whether that was a contract more in the line of a hit man, and the "contract" one to destroy the school as opposed to remedying any problems.  Indeed, if Jennings has completed any agreed upon "contract" it's more like the operation was a success, but the patient is dying.

And while some of the alumni state that the massive loss of faculty, administrators and students is collateral damage (shades of 911!!!), we, the AALU are more concerned with what happens if the soul of the school is sacrificed for some perceived gain.  A gain, by the way, that has yet to be proven in tangible form.

Time to cut bait and move on - time to come out of a "CYA" posture and admit this was an egregious error, and that there are better, more positive, supportive, professional, spiritual, cultural, creative, successful, beneficial candidates that can do much more for Lincoln than push us to the brink of disaster under the guise of "fiscal responsibility."  

As Melissa Harris-Perry stated so succinctly, "he has engendered an atmosphere of hostility on the campus" by his remarks and his demeanor, and  lack of understanding and professionalism. 

The hearts, minds, souls of our students - and the ancestors who walked these hallowed halls before them, are being violated each and every day he remains in their midst.  

JENNINGS MUST GO NOW!
 

STAY BLESSED &

ECLECTICALLY BLACK

Gloria Dulan-Wilson

LU '67

HAIL! HAIL! LINCOLN!!!